Australia Day

Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet and raising of the Union Flag of Great Britain by Arthur Phillip at Sydney Cove, a small bay on the southern shore of Sydney Harbour. The day is promoted by the Australia Day Council, an independent government owned company. Events are run to recognise the contributions of Australians to the nation, while also encouraging reflection on the country's history and reconciliation with Indigenous Australians, and respecting the diversity and achievements of Australian society. The presentation of community awards and citizenship ceremonies are also commonly held on the day. The holiday is marked by the presentation of the Australian of the Year Awards on Australia Day Eve, announcement of the Australia Day Honours list and addresses from the governor-general and prime minister. It is an official public holiday in every state and territory. With community festivals, concerts and citizenship ceremonies, the day is celebrated in large and small communities and cities around the nation. Australia Day has become the biggest annual civic event in Australia.

The meaning and significance of Australia Day has evolved since the first records of celebration in 1808, with contested views on the day existing since at least 1888. Previously, the states celebrated different days that acknowledged their founding, such as Regatta Day in Tasmania, Queensland Day in Queensland or Foundation Day in Western Australia; the celebration of the first Anniversary Day or Foundation Day by New South Wales in 1818 was seen in a similar light. Following Federation in 1901, moves for a national holiday gained pace (prompted by lobbying by the Australian Natives' Association which celebrated ANA Day), with the name Australia Day and the date of 26 January finally selected in 1935, with a public holiday at or around that date in all states in 1940. The first prominent protest also occurred around this time in 1938, with the first Day of Mourning held by the Australian Aborigines' League. In 1994, the date was fixed in all jurisdictions on 26 January, with the practice by some states of holding the holiday on a Friday in late January for a long weekend dropped.

Since at least 1938, the date of Australia Day has also been a day of protest and of mourning the start of the British colonisation of Australia, characterised as an invasion in which Aboriginal Australians had the land that they had occupied for millennia forcibly taken. Some observe 26 January as Invasion Day, Survival Day or as a Day of Mourning, as a counter-observance to the national day. Some counter-observers and others have called for the date of Australia Day to be changed or the holiday to be abolished entirely. Support for changing the date has been a minority position over successive annual polls. A January 2026 Roy Morgan poll found 60.5% support for retaining 26 January as the date for Australia Day.